Thinking of Her
by UnhappyEchidna
Summary: Blake Belladonna is all alone and scared, and she gets attacked just for being different. But when she meets Ruby Rose, life gets better. Over the years they become best friends, and possibly even more. However, no story is without its ups and down, and life can be particularly cruel. Rated T for Violence and blood.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey there everyone! I know it has been a while and I'm sorry about that. But i am still alive! For anyone wishing to know about Wilting Rose and Nightmares And Fairy Tales, I'm still writing them, albeit at a very slow space. However I've been in a writing mood lately so who knows? Maybe ill get a chapter of one of 'em out. Anyway, I want to keep this short and sweet, so if you have any questions, PM me. First up I'd like to say the biggest THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to LazyKatze who edits my stories, gives me advice on how to improve them, and is just an all around awesome person. If you haven't yet, go check out her stories, and if you have, go do it again! Next i want to let everyone know about the Steam Group Reiss. Myself, LazyKate, A-rav, elfenlied1012, and many other writers are on there, so if you want to talk about fics or just about RWBY in general, go check us out! Lastly i just want to thank Monty Oum, Rooster Teeth, and everybody who contributes to it for making RWBY. love you guys! of course RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum, only the idea for the story behind this fic is thought up by yours truly. With that out of the way, on to the story. **

**Chapter 1 (Saturday September 14, 4th era, 3rd cycle)**

The young girl reached up with one hand, trying to cover up the cat ears attached to the top of her head, while the other hand blindly scoured the ground searching for the bow that had been ripped off of her head. The wind was knocked out of her and her stomach heaved when a foot hit her in the gut.

"Faunus trash!"

"Get out of here you filth!"

The crowd continue to grow, the insults only getting worse. Her hand searching for the bow came across something soft just as something impacted the side of her head, sending her sprawling. Clutching her head, the little girl got to her feet.

"Get out of here you filthy animal!"

Tears streamed down her face as she pushed through the wall of people surrounding her, wanting nothing more than to disappear. She ran, weaving in and out of people and leaving the crowd of insults behind her. Ducking into an alley, she, the girl, slumped down against a wall, and pulled her knees to her chest and wept. Ten minutes passed as the girl sat there crying into her knees.

"Why are you crying?" spoke a soft voice, cutting through the sobs.

Blake's head snapped up looking at the intruder. Standing in front of her was a girl a bit younger than her, maybe seven or eight, wearing a faded red hoodie that was a few sizes too big, black cargo pants with holes at the knees and the ankles rolled up, and a pair of red and black worn out sneakers. Her hair fell to about shoulder length, was deep crimson, and messy and unkempt, matching the rest of her outfit. What the crying girl was drawn to, however, was the girl's shining silver eyes. She wanted to run. She wanted to get away from this person who would just call her names and hit her, but she couldn't move. Those eyes wouldn't let her.

"Is it 'cause those people picked on you 'cause you're different?"

She didn't answer, entranced by the girl's eyes. Suddenly the redhead stepped forward, bring her arm up from her side. The crouching girl flinched away, expecting the sting of being hit. She sat there for a moment, with her hands in front of her face, but no blow came. Instead, she felt a soft petting on her cat ears, and a warm cuddly feeling washed over her. She lowered her hands and found the younger girl sitting next to her, stroking her ears.

"People shouldn't pick on you 'cause of your ears, I think they're really cute!" The girl's eyes widened, remembering something. "Oh yeah, my names Ruby! What's yours?" the redhead asked, a smile on her face.

"B-Blake."

"Well Blake, I don't know whats wrong with those other people, but I think you're cool! And pretty!"

Blake looked down at herself to make sure she was the person Ruby was looking at. Her long onyx hair was disheveled and grimy. She was wearing stained white shirt underneath a filthy mud covered black jacket that had its right sleeve almost torn off. Her purple jean pants were faded and ripped, exposing her upper legs to the breeze, giving her a slight chill. Her black running shoes were so worn out that patches of the right shoe had started falling off, making wearing the footwear only slightly better than going barefoot. Though she couldn't see it, she could feel a nasty bruise forming on the side of her face from the blow to the head, and it probably looked horrible, plus any other cut and scrapes she might have. She looked back up at the silver eyed girl who was still gently massaging her cat ears.

"Do-do you really think I'm p-pretty? Even like this?" she questioned.

"Yeah!" She nodded her head as she spoke, like she was trying to make sure Blake believed her. "You're really pretty! Especially your eyes."

Blake reached up and touched just below her eye, remembering her deep amber eyes that came with being a cat faunus. Blake looked down at the ground, her cheeks turning slightly pink. "T-thank you, you're also very pretty and I like your eyes a lot too." They sat like that for a moment when a rumbling from Blake's stomach broke the silence. With all the commotion, she had forgotten she hadn't eaten anything since the previous night.

"Are you hungry?" Ruby asked. " Here." Ruby took her hand off Blake's ear, Blake immediately missing the warmth, and reached into her jacket pocket, pulling out a chocolate chip cookie. Putting the treat out towards Blake, her eyes motioned for her to take it. Blake's eyes widened, the cookie looking very appetizing, but she shook her head and smiled.

"Thank you, but I don't want to eat your cookie and leave you with nothing."

"Well how about this?" Ruby took the cookie in both hands and split it in half, thrusting one half towards the faunus. Blake felt water brimming in her eyes. She reached up and wiped them away, and then took the offered half of the food.

"Thank you, Ruby." Blake looked at the morsel in her hands. As she raised it up to her mouth, she breathed in deep, taking in the sugary smell. Bringing it to her lips, she took a small bite, the somewhat stale cookie tasting better than anything that she had eaten in a while. Unable to control herself, she pushed the rest of the cookie in her mouth and smiled, the taste too good to resist. She swallowed, then leaned against the wall and let out an unintentional sigh of content. A warm feeling returned to her ears, the petting only adding to the bliss of current state. She closed her eyes and a low rumble started from her chest. A slight giggle came from her side.

"You're tired, ain't cha'? Here." The young girl scooted close to Blake, still rubbing the onyx girl's ears. Blake laid her head on the other girl's shoulder and slowly fell asleep, thinking of her.

**Two last things before you go. First the update schedule for this, along with any and all of my other stories, is sporadic and inconsistent at best. I could release a new chapter tomorrow, or i could release one five months from now, but unless it is directly stated differently, i will finish all the fics. Second, any and all feed back you give, it being a review or PM, its highly appreciated. Not only does it let me know what you think, but it also helps me write better.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 (Friday September 20, 4th era, 4th cycle)**

Blake sat at the top of her usual tree, watching as her best friend, Ruby Rose, sprinted up the hill shouting her name. The setting sun was in the background, giving the screaming girl a heavenly glow. Almost everyday they would meet here around sunset and talk about how their day was, Blake always arriving first, waiting in the top of the tree for her rambunctious friend. It had been a year since their first meeting, and what a year it had been. Blake had learned that the now nine year old Ruby was a lot like her. They liked the same music, the same food, and she was an orphan like herself. Unlike her, however, Ruby chose to live in an orphanage. Blake had tried live in one once, but she was only met with hatred and abuse from the matron and other children. Since then, she decide to live on her own, no matter the difficulty.

A shout startled Blake, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"Blake! Did you hear _anything _I said?" a high pitched voice questioned. She looked down at the voice, finding her peppy, crimson headed friend looking up at her with the bright silver eyes that entranced her every time their stares locked. Her cheeks were puffed out in anger, though that did nothing but make her look cuter and more innocent than she already was. A small smile came to Blake's lips.

"Sorry Ruby, I didn't. Could you repeat that?"

"I said, that these people came in to the orphanage and they were looking to adopt 'cause they had a daughter and she was lonely and all and the daughter was there and she was walkin' around playing with all of us and me and her talked and she's really cool and she's eleven like you and-"

"Ruby," Blake cut in, "You're rambling again."

"Oops. Anyway, when they asked the daughter she said she liked me and they decided that want to adopt me!" Blake froze, her mouth hanging open. Unfreezing, she scrambled down the tree and embraced the smaller girl.

"Oh my god, Ruby. That's amazing!" she said, spinning the smaller girl around.

"I know!" the other girl squeaked. Blake put her down and sat down, patting the ground in front of her. Ruby sat down in front of her, nearly bouncing were she sat.

"So," Blake started, "you going to tell me about them?"

"Well, dad's name Anthony DiNozzo, he's Italian though he's really white like us. Mom's name is Li Xiao Long and she's from China and really nice!"

"They have different last names?" Blake questioned.

"Ya, they both liked their own last name and they didn't want to change it!"

"Well, what's the girl's name then?"

"I was getting to that!" Ruby pouted. "Her name is Yang Xiao Long, 'cause she's a girl so she took her mom's last name. She's really awesome! She does all these fighting classes and is really strong, and she has really pretty purple eyes, almost as pretty as yours!" Blake looked down as her face turned red from the off hand complement.

"T-thank you, Ruby," Blake started twiddling her thumbs. "What about your last name?"

"They said I could do whatever I wanted so I decided to keep it the way it is."

"That's good. Your name fits you." Blake looked back up at Ruby. "When do you move in?"

"They said that it takes about a week to get all the paper stuff done, so they said they would get me next week! It's gonna be so cool! They live on the other side of town where that really yummy ice—" Ruby stopped mid sentence, her eyes watering up immediately and looking up, meeting Blake's own. "W-we won't be able to s-see each other e-everyday!" she started, her voice starting to break. Blake tensed when the silver eyed girl suddenly leaped out at her, wrapping her arms around the faunus and knocking her onto her back. "Blake! I-I-I—"

"Shh, it's okay, Ruby." Blake stroked the top the crying girl's head, running her fingers through her crimson hair. "I will still be here for you, even if we can't meet all the time. Everything will be fine," Blake assured the girl in her arms .

The redhead looked up, the outside of her eyes now pink and puffy. She stared into Blake's eyes. "You promise?" she sniffled.

"Of course." The redhead scooted in closer to the onyx girl and laid her head on her shoulder. Blake leaned her head on top of Ruby's, resting her cheek on the top of the other's head.

"I'll make sure I come see you as much as I can! Like every week!" Ruby said into Blake's shoulder.

"I'll be here everyday like normal, so you can see me anytime you want," Blake responded. The young girl squeezed Blake a little tighter.

"You're the best, Blake!" Blake gave the girl a slight squeeze back, continuing combing her hand through the other's hair. She laid there and watched as the sky turned from orange to red, and the smaller girl fell asleep in her arms. A gust of wind blew, giving Blake a slight chill. She snuggled closer to the warm redhead, and let out a sigh. She watched as the sky got darker and the stars started to appear. As she watched, a shooting star streaked through the sky. Blake closed her eyes and squeezed the sleeping girl. She made a wish, thinking of her.

**A/N: Heyo everyone! I'm a bit better with keeping these chapters short so far, so lets hope i don't fall behind. First off i have a feeling I'm going to get a bit of flak for this chapter, in terms of Blake and or Ruby acting too old for there age. How i as the writer see it, they are both orphans who (especially Blake) have had a rough time and are going to age faster (mentally) as a result. If you don't agree with me, sorry for you. Another thing i would like to talk about is the upcoming chapters of this fic. would you guys rather it be more chapters and it move at a slow rate, or less chapters and have it move much faster? please let me know by reviewing or PMing me. I can't make a decision with out your guys and gals input, and no decision means no new chapters! Yet another thing, just wanted to say that next chapter will most likely be considerably bigger. Last, but certainly not least, i want to thank the wonderful, the amazing, and stupendous LazyKatze for editing this, as well as all my stories! she is awesome so please go check out her stories! RWBY is owned by Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth, i only have the idea for the fic.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 (Friday February 14th, 4th Era, 5th Cycle)**

Blake Stumbled as Ruby pulled her along towards the brightly colored house. As they arrived at the front steps, Blake stopped, pulling her hand out of Ruby's. The redhead looked at onyx girl.

"What's the matter Blake?" Ruby questioned.

"Wh-what if they don't like me?" Blake looked down, the ground suddenly becoming more interesting.

"Why wouldn't they like you?"

Blake wiggled her cat ears in response.

"Blaaake!" Ruby rolled her eyes and walked up to the faunus girl, lifting her head up till their eyes met. "The is NO way they wouldn't like you! You're too cute and nice for them to not!" Ruby said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"But what about me being a faunus?" Blake worried, looking back down. Her eyes started to tear up. "Maybe they won't—"

"Nope!" Ruby cut her off. "Don't even put that in your head! They're my parents and there is no way that they wouldn't like you, especially not 'cause you're a faunus!" Blake looked back up at the young girl, their eyes meeting.

"Are-are you sure?" she asked, wiping the tears from her eyes. She felt the redhead's arms wrap around her and hug her, one hand rubbing her back.

"Of course I'm sure. They will like you, kitty ears and all." Ruby's arms slipped away as the girl stepped towards the house. She lifted a hand out to Blake. "You ready?"

Blake looked down and straightened out her shirt. She had picked the best clothes she had, which consisted of a long purple t-shirt with a hole by the bottom and her best pair of black jeans. The jeans had had only one hole in them, which she patched last night. With extra money she had earned, she bought a new-ish set of black and white flats, completing her look. Even though it was still chilly out near the end of winter, she never really got too cold and didn't bring a jacket. Blake looked up, meeting Ruby's silver eyes with her own amber ones. She reached out and took Ruby's hand.

"Yeah." They headed up the steps up to the door and when they arrived, Blake watched as the redhead struggled with trying to use the keys one-handed, until finally the girl got them in the lock. Ruby swung the door open and yelled, causing Blake to jump.

"HEY EVERYBODY, I'M HOME AND I BROUGHT MY FRIEND I TOLD YA ABOUT!"

"We'll be there in a second!" a smooth, low voice came from around the corner. Blake stood with her hands behind her back as Ruby slid her jacket off, revealing her red shirt, which went well with her black pants similar to Blake's and her red skate shoes. The girl turned back towards Blake as two people rounded the corner. One was a tall man, around six feet, who had a pale complexion but was decently built. He had short, dark brown hair and deep, blood red eyes, which were strangely calming more so than frightening. He was wearing a large white t-shirt that became more formed the higher up it got, and blue jeans that had a large hole in the right knee. Next to him was short woman, not much taller than Blake. Standing about 5 feet, she was wearing a loose pair of tan cargo pants and a long, blonde hair. Her eyes were a vibrant orange, which made Blake feel a little uneasy, until the woman smiled at her, calming her.

"Hello," the woman started with a slight chinese accent, "I'm Li. Nice to meet you."

A strong Italian accent followed,"And I'm Anthony, but you can call me Tony. Yang 'll be down in a sec." Blake looked over to the redhead, who was nodding her head and waving her on with eagerness. Turning back to the couple, Blake breathed, letting out the breath she didn't realize she had been holding. Quietly, she spoke, "H-hi, I'm Blake. Nice to m-meet you."

"Hey now," Tony said, "There's no need to be shy!" His hand came forward and rested itself on her head before she had time to react. She had had her ears press to the top of her head, hiding in her black tresses, which his hand now rested on top of.

"Oh!" he exclaimed, pulling his hand back quickly. Blake knew he had felt them, and from his reaction she was expecting the insults to come. She turned to run out the door but was trapped when two large arms wrapped around her.

"I'm sorry! I hope I didn't hurt ya! Ya know, you don't gotta hide 'em here. We all ain't got no problem with faunus." The arms loosened and Blake turned around and faced the man who was now kneeling on one knee. She looked back at the red eyes staring at her, a smile on the man's lips.

_Sorry._

No one ever said sorry to her. No one ever apologized. At best she would get a low grunt. At worse... This man—no this family, did nothing to her, caused her no harm, apologized to her, and welcomed her into their home. Ruby really did have a great family. Blake felt light as a feather, and her eyes were brimming with tears. She ran forward and embraced the man, holding him tight.

"Thank you," she mumbled into his chest, her tears wetting his shirt. She felt a hand gingerly lay on top of her head, rubbing in between her ears. She slowly lifted them until they were in their upright position.

"It's okay," she felt his chest rumble as he spoke, his hand still rubbing her head. "You're safe here. I like the ears by the way, they look real nice and fit ya perfectly! No pun intended."

"Ya! I told you they were really cute!" came from the readhead to her side. Blake pulled her head away from the his chest and looked around at the three.

"Thank you everybody," she said through a stuffy nose.

"But we didn't do anythin'," Tony said quizzically. Blake turned back to face the man she was holding.

"Exactly," she calmly stated, giving the man a proper hug this time.

"Oh sweety," Li spoke, walking over to the group and kneeling down as well. She pulled a tissue from her pocket and started wiping away Blake's tears. "You don't need to thank somebody for treating you like a regular person." Blake backed up, stepping away from the pair.

"Other than Ruby," she started, "you have been the first people who actually have been nice to me. I want to thank you for that, so, so much." Li smiled at her.

"Well, you're welcome. Ruby, why don't you take Blake into the living room while we get everyone something to drink. What would you like Blake?" Blake felt her face burning with embarrassment.

"M-milk, if that's okay."

Li chuckled and nodded at her. "Of course dear."

"Come on, Blake. Let's go!" Ruby said, grabbing Blake's hand and pulling her away from the door and towards the next room. Ruby threw herself onto the nearest end of the couch and sighed. "Ahh, home at last. That walk takes foreveerrrr!" Blake sat down at the other end of the couch, resting on her back on the arm rest. She thought about the 30 minute walk they had taken to get to the house, and how Ruby always had to do the walk twice, once to get to her and once to get back home.

"Thank you for always going out of your way to come see me." Ruby lifted her head and looked at her, a smile ear to ear.

"No prob, Blakey! I love seeing you!"

"So," Blake began, "how's 'real' school?" she asked, making air quotes with her fingers.

Ruby plopped her head back down onto the couch. "It's _soooooo_ boring, just like at the orphanage. All they do is tell us stuff you already taught me." Ruby paused for a moment before continuing. "How'd you know all that junk anyway? I went to school in the orphanage, but you haven't been in one in a while and you don't go to school."

" Well, I read a lot and what I don't learn in the books I learn when I am on the streets or working so I can—AHHHH!" Blake jumped forward and practically landed on Ruby when something touched her right cat ear. She turned and looked for the intruder of her personal space. Standing behind the arm of the couch was a girl with lilac eyes and long, golden hair, her arm outstretched to the place where Blake's head had just been. She was wearing a yellow shirt with a outline of a heart on it, white shorts, and a light brown scarf. The girl had a light tan, making her bright white smile stand out that much more. A chuckle came from the girl.

"Jumpy, ain't cha?" The girl climbed over the the arm rest and started crawling towards her. Blake started crawling backwards, trying to escape the blonde girl and in the process was squishing the smaller redhead.

"Who are-what are you doing?!" Blake stammered as the girl reached her and wrapped her in a bear hug, pulling her back to the other side of the couch.  
"I, dear lady, am Yang! And you need to eat more, you're way too light." Blake struggled as Yang sat back against the couch, placing her in front of her.

"_What_ are you doing to me?"

"Calm down. It ain't nothin' bad," Yang said as one arm snaked all the way around Blake and pinned her to the girl, while the other came up to rest on the top of her onyx hair. Blake kept struggling until she felt the hand rubbing her ear, then she let out an unintentional sigh. "See? I told ya it wasn't bad!"

"So… you don't think they're weird either?"

"Na, they're pretty cool!"

"Ya," Ruby cut in, " Really, really, cool!" There was silence for a few seconds, and Blake felt the soft rubbing on her head. She rubbed her head against the friction, trying to get as much feeling as possible.

Yang's voice broke the silence. "Do you purr?" Blake recoiled away, scrambling towards the redhead, her face burning with embarrassment.

"Only Ruby has made me purr before."

"Well, can I tr—"

"NO!" yelled Ruby and Blake in unison. They looked at each other, donning matching red faces.

"Uhhh," Yang said, looking at them quizzically.

"It's a thing that I only want Ruby to do..." Blake answered, playing with her thumbs.

"Ya..." Ruby supplied, also looking down, "It's like, our special thing..."

"Can at still rub your head?" Yang pouted.

"I-I guess it would be okay," Blake stuttered. "But right now I want Ruby to rub my head."

"After you girl have your drinks," a voice came from the other side of the room. The three girls turned to see Li coming from the kitchen holding three glasses, two filled with milk and one with a bubbly brown liquid, and three golden brown cookies with chocolate chips melting down the top.

"YYYYYEEEEAAAAA COOOOKKKKIIEEESSSSSS!" Ruby squealed. Li walked around and handed all three of them a cookie and a glass, Yang receiving the brown liquid which Blake had identified as Root Beer. Blake felt Ruby scoot closer to her, and they both took a bite of their cookies. The sugary sweetness melted all over Blake's taste buds, the taste like heaven in her mouth. The taste and proximity of the redhead reminded her of the first time they met. Blake smiled while eating and drinking, whilst in her head, she was thinking of Her.

**A/N: heyo everyone! hope you like this long chapter, though don't expect to many long chapters like it. I asked you all last time if you wanted my "stretch" the story or make it short and the unanimous response was long, so long it is! though i will have to warn you, some times it might be a long time in between chapters if I'm having trouble for chapters. I want to thank the best editor ever, LazyKatze for editing and making my stories understandable. go check out her stories, including her new collaboration with A-rav, Fighting a Beautiful Death. Myself and some other writer are part of steam group chat called Reiss, in which all members, writers and not, talk about RWBY, the ships in it, and a plethora of of other topics. please join us if you feel inclined to do so. RWBY is owned by Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4 ( Saturday March 22nd, 4th Era 5th Cycle)**

"Right there, Ruby. That's perfect." Blake felt Ruby shift behind her, her head now resting in the crook of the redhead's neck. They were laying against the big tree in the park, watching the clouds drift by as Ruby rubbed Blake's ears. Blake felt a slow rumble start from deep in her chest, reverberating through the rest of her body. She let the feeling grow, the sound now audible to the girl her head was laying on. She snuggled her head deeper into the girl's shoulder, trying to get as much of her warmth as possible. Blake heard Ruby giggle.

"You're a cute kitty cat!"

"Oh, be quiet," Blake said, still rubbing against the other girl and purring as the redhead massaged her ears. A gentle breeze blew across the hill top as she snuggled up to the other girl and relaxed, letting herself drift into a peaceful sleep.

"Hey Blake, wakey wakey!" a soft hand gently shook her, coaxing her out of her peaceful sleep. She cracked her eyes a bit, letting a soft light entering her vision before opening them fully. She lifted her head off its comfy rest and turned towards the other girl. Their eyes met, and with an orange sky in the background, the red head glowed radiantly, looking like something out of a fairytale.

"Good morning, sleepyhead, or should I say good evening?" Ruby joked. Blake stared at younger girl, unable to tear her eyes away from the captivating site. A slight chuckle from the redhead snapped her out of the trance, and after a slight shake of her head the raven haired teen began to sit up. Slightly into her her movement she stopped, feeling something over her body. The faunus looked, finding a red jacket covering the lower half of her body as well as the other girl's arms, still wrapped lightly around her stomach. Blake reached up and rubbed her eyes as she yawned.

"Geez," she said, finishing up her yawn, "How long have I been sleeping for?"

Ruby shrugged her shoulders. "I dunno. Like, four hours maybe?"

"Are you going to be late getting home?" Blake questioned.

"Na, I'll be fine, but I was wondering if you wanted to come with me?"

"Well, I do, but all my clothes are—"

"You can just borrow some of mine or Yang's." Blake bit her lip, contemplating whether or not she should ask so much from them.

"Are you sure I'm allowed? I dont want to be trouble or anything."

"Blake, you've been over like, a _bajillion_ times! You know that they don't care! And even if they did, they love you! Come on, PWEEEAAASSSSEEEEE?" Ruby's started quivering her bottom lip, her eyes starting to fill with tears. Fake tears, Blake knew, but it worked all the same. Blake hadn't met a person yet that could say no to Ruby's faux sad face.

"Oh fine." Blake playfully rolled her eyes. "You know I can't say no to you."

"Same to you, missy," the redhead returned. Blake took the jacket off her lower half and stood. She reached down and helped Ruby to her feet.

"Thank you for keeping me warm and for letting me sleep on you. Weren't you cold and uncomfortable?"

Ruby smiled at Blake, shaking her head."Na, you were cozy and warm! And it was no problem. I really like petting you."

"I really enjoy it, too." Blake handed Ruby her jacket back and the girl slipped it on over her head.

"You ready?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, let's go."

The sun started its descent beneath the horizon and the sky grew dark as the two walked to Ruby's home, talking about nothing and everything. As they strolled down the road, Blake noticed that the closer they got, the more fidgety and disconcerted Ruby became. When they arrived the house, Ruby turned to face Blake, the moon just starting to peek up behind her. The slightly ominous setting gave Blake a chill down her spine, and the redhead's nervousness did nothing to help.

"Umm, you stay out here, so I can go…" Ruby's eyes fidgeted back and forth, then grew wide as she looked back at Blake, "Make sure everyone's dressed! Ya, that! Be right back!"

Before Blake could question her, Ruby turned and ran up the steps and disappeared into the house. Blake sat down on the front step, wondering what had just occurred. _What's wrong with her? It's been a week or two since I've been here last, maybe something happened? Oh gosh, I hope everything is okay! _A loud bang snapped Blake out of her thoughts. _That sounded like it came from her house. What is going on in there?_

"Hey, Blake, you can come in now!" the faunus turned and looked at the door where the younger girl's head was sticking out from the side with an ear to ear grin on her face. Ruby disappeared from the doorway as Blake got up and started to ascend the steps. When she got to the top, she opened the door the rest of the way and stepped in. Inside it was dark and silent, the complete opposite of the normal rambunctious, overbearing state of the house.

"Ruby," Blake called out, "where did you go?" no response came back other than a light echo of her self. She slipped off her shoes and started down the hall, searching for the younger girl. As she approached the split between the kitchen and the living room, she could she a faint glow coming from the former.

"Hello?" Blake shouted, "Anybody there?" She rounded the corner into the kitchen and faltered, her hand shooting up to cover her mouth. In front of her was Ruby, Yang, Li, and Tony huddled around a table wearing funny pointed hats. The room was filed with streamers of all shapes and colors, and hanging over the table in lage purple letters was a banner that read 'Happy Birthday Blake!' The four people broke the silence with a loud yell.

"SUPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!" Tears streamed down Blake's face as the group sung, standing around a big brown cake with candles flickering on top. As they sang, Ruby stepped forward and took Blake's hand, pulling her towards the rest of them. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR BLLLAAAAAAKKKKKEEEE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUUUUUUU!" Ruby nearly tackled Blake, wrapping her in a hug that rivaled a bear's.

"Happy birthday Blake! So, were ya surprised? 'Cause I remembered your birthday was soon, so I wanted to have a party for you, so I asked Tony and Li and they said yes, but I didn't know if you were gonna come or not so when me and you got back we started setting up and—Blake, are you okay?"

Blake's eyes were full of tears, puffy, and red. Her nose was running and was stuffy. She was shaking and had to hold onto the redhead to keep herself standing. Blake was not okay. She was _so _much better than okay.

"Ruby, I..." She couldn't get the words out, so instead she hugged the shorter girl. Tony squatted down next to her, resting a hand on her back.

"Hey there squirt, what's the matter?" Blake shook her head, trying to communicate around the crying that she was alright. She lifted herself slightly off the redhead and wiped away her tears. She looked face to face with her friend as her smile quivered, the tears threatening to break back through.

" T-this is gonna s-sound stupid, b-but I've always wa-wanted to have a b-birthday party." Ruby's mouth dropped slightly and all was still for a moment, save for the slight flickering of the candles. The shorter girl shot her hands up. Gripping Blake's shoulders, she shook her violently and started to yell. "YOU'VE NEVER HAD A BIRTHDAY PARTY!?"

" I-I've never had anybody to have a party with…" the room fell into brief silence, broken by Tony's warm voice.

"It's okay sweetie, we're always here for ya." He gave her pat on the back. "Now go on and blow out the candles before we have to eat the waxiest cake ever," he said with a wink.

"And don't forget to make your wish!" Ruby chimed in.

Blake grinned ear to ear as she closed her eyes and made a wish. She blew out the candles, thinking of her.


End file.
